How to find water for a well: an overview of the most effective ways to find water on the site

Almost scientific dowsing methods

Such methods can hardly be classified as scientific, but there is no doubt about their effectiveness.

Aluminum electrodes and wire

Using aluminum frames is a popular method. Aluminum picks up magnetic vibrations in the terrain that are affected by water.

To find a water vein, you need to prepare:

• 2 pieces of aluminum wire 40-45 cm long;
• 2 fragments of a viburnum or elderberry trunk, 10-12 cm long.

To search, you need to go around the territory with frames in your hands, press your elbows to the body, do not clench your fists too much. During the movement, the ends of the frame must be separated in opposite directions. If there is an aquifer on the left or right underground, both ends of the frame will turn in the right direction. If the watercourse is a few meters ahead, the ends of the wire will close.

To make sure that the chosen place is correct, it is recommended to repeat the bypass of the site, but you should move along a different route.

Willow vine at the heart of the search

Willow by nature feels water and reaches for it with branches. It is not difficult to search for the source yourself with the help of a vine. To do this, you need to find a willow branch with 2 ends coming out of one trunk, and dry it. Then you need to take the edges of the vine in each hand and spread them apart so that the angle between them is approximately 150 °, the branch should be directed slightly upwards.

With such a device, you need to bypass the site. Where there is a stream, the willow branch will sink closer to the ground without labor and effort.

For more accurate indicators, it is recommended to bypass the territory:

• from 6 to 7 am;
• afternoon from 16:00 to 17:00;
• in the evening from 20:00 to 21:00;
• at night from 12:00 to 1:00.

Aquifers and location in the ground

There is water underground, but it is not so easy to find. You can, of course, dig a hole at random in the hope of accidentally stumbling upon an aquifer, but the result is likely to be disappointing.

Meanwhile, it happens that if you didn’t miss literally two meters, the desired goal would be achieved.After all, the water in the earth is located between the layers of soil, which it is not able to erode because of its water-resistant composition, which is based on clay and rocks.

Clay layers are interspersed with sandy interlayers, gravel and pebble deposits. They contain pure water. It is to such an aquifer that it is necessary to get to those who decide to dig a well in their area.

Aquifers lie unevenly and their location is not so easy to detect, but for those who are going to equip the well, such information is necessary

It should be noted that the aquifer is not the same in terms of geometric parameters throughout its entire length. Somewhere the sand layer becomes thinner, and in other places it becomes wider and deeper.

The waterproof layer is also not the same: in one place it is located horizontally, and in another it can bend or even bend. In places of curvature of the water-resistant layer, the largest volumes of sand saturated with water are stored.

Where to dig?

With absorbent

Absorbents are materials that can absorb gases or liquids, in this case water.

The method is based on the fact that the soil above the aquifer has high humidity, even if it lies deep enough.

You should take a small clay container (a pot is best) and fill it with well-dried silica gel in the sun or in the oven.

Now this container must be wrapped in natural fabric and buried in the ground at the site of the proposed well construction to a depth of 0.5 to 1 m.

After a day, the container is removed, removed from the linen shell and weighed again.

The difference in weight is the intelligence we need: the larger it is, the more likely it is that groundwater is located under this place.

Using this method, you can probe the entire area and find the zones with the highest soil moisture.

A good absorbent is not only silica gel, but also ordinary red brick, as well as salt.

Pottery itself can be useful. If you don't have absorbent material, simply place a pot or bowl upside down on the ground. Take a look inside after a while. By the amount of condensed moisture (the inner surface will fog up), it is possible to estimate the moisture content of the soil.

Analysis of the vegetation growing on the site

Representatives of the plant kingdom can sometimes tell about the hydrogeological situation no less than a team of drillers with a whole truckload of tools. So, if there is a place with especially bright juicy grass on the site, most likely, somewhere below there is an underground reservoir.

A mangled trunk of a birch almost certainly indicates that the tree grows above the perch.

The presence of willow, maple or alder can also be considered encouraging, especially if these trees grow with a slope in any direction. Such plants are considered moisture-loving:

• woodlice;
• wild currant;
• river gravel;
• spiraea;
• sorrel;
• forest reed;
• nettle;
• horsetail;
• goose cinquefoil.

A sign of deep aquifers (about 30 m) are pine and other coniferous plants with a long root.

Animal Behavior and Natural Phenomena

It has long been known among the people: where a cat often goes to rest, one can dig a well with confidence. The dog, on the contrary, tries to choose the driest place.

Many of us had to suddenly find ourselves during an evening walk in a swirling swarm of midges, which ended as suddenly as it began. If this happened within your site, there is reason to rejoice: in this way, nature has designated a place with groundwater.

Among the most reliable signs are the formation of fog in the evening and morning hours and abundant dew.

barometric method

If there is a river or lake near your site, the depth of the aquifer can be determined using a conventional barometer.

The methodology relies on the fact that the groundwater level will most likely correspond to the water level in the reservoir.

You should act like this:

1. Once on the river bank, we notice the readings of the barometer.
2. Now we move to our summer cottage and again look at the scale of the device.
3. We calculate the difference in the recorded readings and divide it by 0.1. The resulting value will correspond with sufficient accuracy to the depth of the planned well or well.

Let's take an example. Suppose that on the shore of the lake the barometer needle pointed to 746 mm Hg. Art., and in the country the readings changed to 745.3 mm Hg. Art. The difference between the pressure is 0.7 mm Hg. Art., respectively, the water is most likely located at a depth of H = 0.7 / 0.1 = 7 m.

dowsing

A very effective method, judging by its popularity among the people, but absolutely inexplicable from the point of view of official science.

It is necessary to take two pieces of aluminum wire and bend them in the form of the letter "G" (the length of the crossbar is 10 cm, the legs are 30 cm).

Now, from two segments of elderberry branches about 10 cm long, we make bushings, drilling out the core.

Keeping the sleeves vertical (forearms parallel to the ground, elbows bent and pressed to the belt), we lower the aluminum frames into them (short side) and carefully move through the area from north to south. The same "scan" must be done in the direction from east to west

Above the aquifer, the frames should converge.

Effect of Depth on Water Quality

If you dig a well in the place where exactly the water is located, the aquifer can be found even just some two to two and a half meters from the earth's surface. Knowledgeable people call such a water layer top water and do not use it for drinking.

Proximity to the surface is not a good sign, because the water has accumulated due to the melting of snow, infiltration of rain streams and waters of nearby reservoirs. The quality of the water in it leaves much to be desired, because there is a high probability of leakage of sewage and other dirt.

The deeper the aquifer is located, the less likely it is that all kinds of dirt on the surface of the soil can spoil the water.

In addition, the mirror of such water is, as a rule, unstable. A well with perched water can dry up completely during the summer heat and fill up during the season of snowmelt or autumn lingering rains.

And this means that the sources of water supply that feed on perched water will also be empty, and summer residents will be left without water in the hot summer season, when it is especially needed. Under such circumstances, it is better to forget about plans for the harvest. After all, until late autumn, water in the well is not expected.

Therefore, we will look for water deeper. Experts believe that high-quality water is not so deep, only 15 meters from the soil level. In the sands, the water in which is clean and tasty. The sandy layer in which water is "stored" is a natural filter. Passing moisture through itself, it cleans it from the remnants of dirt and harmful elements.

If you are interested in arranging a personal water source in your summer cottage, you should compare the arguments in favor of a well or a well, and also learn about their shortcomings. We invite you to take a look at our comparison review.

Practical Water Detection Methods

In addition to visual observation and analysis of what you see, practical methods for detecting water on the site using various tools and devices will help you find water. These can be glass jars and clay pots, grapevine and aluminum wire, moisture-absorbing materials (silica gel or red brick, and so on).

It must be said that at present these methods are used less and less. Although independent searches for an aquifer are very exciting, here you can imagine yourself as a gold digger. It is much more reliable and efficient to carry out exploratory drilling in the right place. True, this requires financial costs.

The simplest thing is to interview neighbors in the area

The simplest, but at the same time the most effective method of finding a place where it is best to equip a well is to interview neighbors in the area.

Those of them who have already acquired their own autonomous source of water supply, probably conducted research before digging it.

They can provide effective assistance by providing information on the intelligence work carried out.This information will help save a lot of time looking for an aquifer. If the neighbors in the area do not have wells, you will have to look for water on your own.

Dowsing with a frame made of vine or aluminum

The location of the aquifer can be determined by dowsing using an aluminum frame or willow vine. The procedure for the aluminum frame is as follows:

• two forty-centimeter pieces of wire are bent at a right angle, as in the photo, and placed in a hollow tube so that they can rotate freely in it;
• having turned the ends of the wires in different directions and taking the tubes in hand, we begin to move along the site;
• in the place where the ends of the wire converge, there is an aquifer;
• the control passage of the section is carried out in a perpendicular direction.

The manipulations when using a willow frame are similar. This method is called dowsing and is as follows:

• a branch is cut from a willow with a fork of approximately one hundred and fifty degrees;
• the vine is thoroughly dried;
• when passing through the site, the vine is taken in hand so that the trunk is directed upwards;
• in the place where it goes down, there is water.

The most reliable is to conduct exploratory drilling

The most reliable method of detecting water on the site is to conduct reconnaissance drilling on it.

Using a conventional drill, several meters of rock are passed before colliding with the water horizon. Before you start digging a well, you need to send a sample of it for analysis to determine the presence of harmful impurities in its composition.

Folk method - arrange pots and jars

The folk method of searching for water on the site is carried out using glass jars and clay pots. In the evening, ordinary glass canning jars or pots are placed upside down throughout the site. In the morning they are carefully examined. The containers, at the bottom of which the largest amount of condensed moisture has collected, will indicate the location of the water vein.

Method for finding water by measuring the mass of hygroscopic materials

Moisture-absorbing material, such as ordinary table salt, is placed in identical clay pots. Pots of salt are weighed and buried in the ground evenly throughout the site. They are then dug up and weighed again. Those of them who received the greatest weight gain will show the location of the water.

The use of a barometer and other instruments is serious

A device such as a barometer, which can measure atmospheric pressure, will allow you to determine the depth of the water vein if there is a river, lake or other body of water near the site and, thus, help answer the question: how to find water for a well?

Atmospheric pressure is measured at the site and on the shore of the reservoir. Then you should remember from the school physics course that one millimeter of mercury corresponds to a height difference of thirteen meters and compare the measurement readings. If the difference was half a millimeter of mercury, then the aquifer is located at a depth of 13/2 = 7.5 meters.

We hope that the above information will help you find crystal clear water on your site. The following video sets out the authoritative opinion of a hydrologist on this issue.

At what distance from other structures is it allowed to drill a well

When determining the location of the future source of water supply, the location of existing or planned buildings should be taken into account. The maximum distance should be from the septic tank - and it is clear: a sump and clean water nearby is nonsense. According to SNiP, the minimum distance between these objects is 50 meters. Does the site allow the well to be located away from the treatment plant? Great, we are guided by the principle "the further, the better." This applies to pit latrines, 'latrine' type toilets, compost heaps, livestock buildings, chicken coops, and other soil-contaminating facilities.

It is desirable that there are no trees and shrubs within a radius of 5-6 meters: large roots will interfere with the arrangement, repair. The well is drilled at a reasonable distance from the house (at least 3–5 meters), and if the place is chosen not far from the adjacent site (closer than 5 meters from the fence), then the location of neighboring buildings is also taken into account.

How to find water on the site using folk methods

There are many ways to determine if there is water on the site. Here are some well-known methods.

Paying attention to plants

There are several types of plants that need water constantly and in large quantities. For example, wood lice, she is starfish. It is a small herb with large round leaves. Its accumulation is an accurate sign of water located close to the surface of the soil.

The same can be said about the accumulation of river gravel. A plant of the pink family is an excellent indicator. If you are faced with the task of how to find water on the site, then look for a cluster of plants. Under them there is necessarily an aquifer.

By the way, coniferous trees say otherwise.That is, there is water on the site, but it is very deep. Because the root system of pine and spruce are trunks directed in depth.

Using frames

This is the old fashioned way. To do this, you need an aluminum wire 40 cm long, the end of which is bent at a right angle. The length of the bend is 10 cm. It is it that is inserted into a wooden tube, which can be made from an elderberry sprig by selecting a core from it. The main requirement is that the aluminum wire must rotate freely inside the wooden tube. You need to make two such devices.

How to use aluminum frames:

1. The cardinal points are determined in the area where the pegs are driven in.
2. A frame is taken in each hand. The elbows are pressed to the body, the arms are bent at the elbows. Shoulders should be kept straight and parallel to the ground.
3. Now in this position it is necessary to move from north to south, and then from east to west.
4. Where the frames begin to rotate and cross, a peg is driven in.

There may be several such places, because a drain is a channel, like a river. Therefore, you can find a point convenient, for example, for the construction of a well or well.

Vine use

Another old way to find water for a well. It has a scientific name - dowsing. Although scientists have not found scientific confirmation in it. Usually this method is used by people who are sensitive to signals coming from the ground. The most important thing is the correct interpretation of these signals. After all, communications are often located underground, which also emit signals

And here it is important not to run into, for example, a pipe, thinking that they attacked the aquifer

As practice shows, this method gives 50% success. That is, it is not so accurate, but it all depends on the person, his abilities.And if the water is deep, then it is difficult to find it with a vine. How they look for water with a vine. To do this, you need a fresh branch of a tree, usually willow is chosen. It should be in the shape of a slingshot. As for the sizes:

• diameter 8-12 mm;
• the distance between the ends of the slingshot is the width of the torso of the person who holds it in his hands.

How vines work:

1. She is held in her hands, squeezing lightly in her fists by the horns.
2. The end of the slingshot is directed away from the person, preferably horizontally, so the vine itself should be light.
3. The person moves around freely.
4. As soon as the device deviates from the horizontal up or down a few centimeters, this means that there is water below the ground.

So, three ways were dismantled on how to find water on the site with your own hands, using folk remedies. Now we will consider the characteristics of the aquifer. But let's give you one more piece of advice.

If there are already neighbors near the suburban area who operate a well or a well, then you need to talk to them like a neighbor. They will tell you exactly at what depth the groundwater level is located, whether it is enough to operate a hydraulic structure, and what is better to do: a well or a well.

Effective ways to find water

There are more than a dozen ways to determine the proximity of water to the surface. The search for water under the well can be done using one of the following effective methods.

To do this, the granules of the substance are carefully dried beforehand in the sun or in the oven and put into an unglazed clay pot. To determine the amount of moisture absorbed by the granules, the pot must be weighed before instillation.A pot of silica gel, wrapped in a non-woven material or dense fabric, is buried in the ground to a depth of about a meter at the site where the well is planned to be drilled. A day later, the pot with the contents can be dug up and weighed again: the heavier it is, the more moisture it has absorbed, which in turn indicates the presence of an aquifer nearby.

The use of silica gel, which belongs to the category of substances that have the ability to absorb moisture and retain it, will allow in just a couple of days to determine the most suitable place for drilling a well or arranging a well

In order to narrow down the search for water for a well, several of these clay containers can be used simultaneously. You can more accurately determine the optimal location for drilling by re-burying the silica gel pot.

A reading of 0.1 mm Hg of a barometer corresponds to a difference in pressure height of 1 meter. To work with the device, you must first measure its pressure readings on the shore of a nearby reservoir, and then move together with the device to the place of the proposed arrangement of the source of water production. At the well drilling site, air pressure measurements are taken again, and the water depth is calculated.

The presence and depth of groundwater is also successfully determined using a conventional aneroid barometer.

For example: the barometer reading on the river bank is 545.5 mm, and on the site - 545.1 mm. The level of groundwater occurrence is calculated according to the principle: 545.5-545.1 = 0.4 mm, i.e. the depth of the well will be at least 4 meters.

Trial exploration drilling is one of the most reliable ways to find water for a well.

Exploratory drilling allows not only to indicate the presence and level of occurrence of water, but also to determine the characteristics of the soil layers occurring before and after the aquifer

Drilling is carried out using a conventional garden hand drill. Since the depth of an exploratory well is on average 6-10 meters, it is necessary to provide for the possibility of increasing the length of its handle. To carry out the work, it is enough to use a drill with a screw diameter of 30 cm. As the drill deepens, so as not to break the tool, excavation must be carried out every 10-15 cm of the soil layer. Wet silvery sand can be observed already at a depth of about 2-3 meters.

The place for arranging the well should be located no closer than 25-30 meters from drainage trenches, compost and garbage heaps, as well as other sources of pollution. The most successful placement of the well is on an elevated site.

Terrain-following aquifers at elevated locations provide cleaner, filtered water

Rain water and melt water always flows from the hill to the valley, where it gradually drains into the water-resistant layer, which in turn displaces clean filtered water to the level of the aquifer.

Search Practices

When the observation stage is over, and the neighbor said that he had already bought the site with a well, it is time for a practical search for water layers using standard or non-standard methods.

Method # 1 - using glass containers

Finding the right amount of glass jars of the same size is not a problem for those who occasionally do home canning.If you don’t have cans, buy them, the summer resident will definitely need them sooner or later.

The contents of ordinary glass jars will eloquently tell you exactly where the aquifer can be located: look for a container with the highest concentration of condensate

Throughout the area, you need to dig glass jars of the same size with the bottom up to a depth of at least 5 cm. The duration of the experiment is a day. The next morning, before the sun rises, you can dig and turn the dishes.

We are interested in those banks in which there is condensate. It is more in banks located above aquifers.

Method # 2 - the use of hygroscopic material

It is known that salt is hygroscopic, that is, it is able to absorb moisture even from the air. The red brick crushed into powder has the same properties. Silica gel is another material that is perfect for our purposes.

To conduct the experiment, we will need several clay pots that are not glazed. Choose a day when there has not been rain for a long time and we expect that it will not be expected in the next day.

You need pots like this that are not covered with glaze inside and out, because they “breathe” perfectly and are able to pass water vapor inside

We fill the material into pots and weigh the resulting "devices". It is better to number the pots, and write down the data obtained. We wrap each pot with non-woven material and bury it at a depth of half a meter in the ground in different places of the site.

A day later, we unearth the bookmarks and re-weigh. The heavier the pot has become along with its contents, the closer to the place of its laying is the aquifer.